Marc-Andre Lemburg

2012 Board Member.

I've been board member in the years 2002-2004 and then again since 2010.

PSF things I've been working on last year:

• the Python brochure project (see http://brochure.getpython.info/)
• the PSF conference kits to market the PSF at Python conferences (see e.g. https://twitter.com/reingart/status/270590720790904832)
• created giveaway marketing material for use a Python conferences and user groups (flyers, stickers)
• initiated the Python Events Calendars and built a team around them (see http://python.org/, http://pycon.org/, http://wiki.python.org/moin/PythonEventsCalendar)
• promoted the PSF and the HAM membership at conferences in Europe (EuroPython, PyCon UK, PyCon DE, FOSDEM, FrOSCON)
• lead the team to recover the Python, Jython and PSF wikis (see http://wiki.python.org/moin/WikiAttack2013)
• collected dispersed PSF infrastructure setup information and put it up on a new PSF Systems wiki

in addition to the usual PSF board and trademark committee work.

Things I'd like to initiate this year:

• create conference kits to promote Python for use at conferences that have a broader scope such as OSCON and FOSDEM
• create more marketing material and setup a way for conferences and user groups to more easily request such material
• start work on creating a PSF network of national and regional Python associations to help market Python in more diverse ways
• push the PSF towards being a much more open organization, so that the Python community can start to feel at home in the PSF

I'd like to continue with this work as director and look forward to another year serving on the board.

Jesse Noller

Current 2012/13 Board Member.

I have served on the board since 2010.

Foundation work I have started/lead:

• Chaired PyCon US 2012/2013, served as PyCon Program Committee Chair the two years prior as well as leading sponsorship.
• Leading the Python.org redesign team/project: http://jessenoller.com/blog/2012/11/28/the-great-python-org-redesign
• Lead/Pushed for the Conference code of conduct motion: http://jessenoller.com/blog/2012/12/7/the-code-of-conduct
• Helped start the outreach an education committee: http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/outreach-and-education
• Helped start/found the sprints committee: http://pythonsprints.com/
• Helped source and push for the new OSU hosted PSF infrastructure/cluster
• Helped found the http://pythonmentors.com/ project
• Assisting in various infrastructure things (such as sourcing the new part time sysadmins, SSL certs)
• Assisted in working with various individuals, conferences and groups write and submit grants to the PSF board for funding.
• (trying) to work on a PSF FAQ: http://psf-docs.readthedocs.org/en/latest/_docs/faq.html
• (working on) a conference/community event book for the community: https://from-python-import-conference.readthedocs.org/en/latest/
• Assisted in various outreach efforts, communicating with the community on various topics, telling people and projects how the foundation can help them. General Public relations and community discussion work.
• (I'm probably forgetting things) in addition to the normal board work.

Things I'd like to continue to do / evolve:

• Revamp and rethink the PSF Sponsor member system; put together a strong recurring revenue stream for the foundation that can assist the community through grants.
• Continue to work with outreach and education groups on behalf of the foundation (such as PyLadies, etc)
• Finish the Python.org redesign
• Work on further evolution and modernization of the python.org and other services infrastructure and team
• Examine additional areas where the foundation can serve and assist the community as a whole
• Continue in assisting and advising PyCon US (in montreal) as a sponsorship coordinator / board liaison
• Continue to work and assist in finding ways of improving the general knowledge of, and general marketing of the foundation and how it can help the community in general.
• Continue finding areas to improve the general public relations other areas of the foundation.
• Examine how the foundation can get more involved in "future-proofing" the community - e.g. outreach and getting involved in education initiatives.
• And a lot more!

I would be honored to continue to serve on the board and working to make a more diverse (in all ways) board, membership and community.

David Mertz

Current 2012/13 Board Member.

I have served on the PSF board for four years, would like to continue to do so, and would be honored if the membership elects me again to do so.

• I chair the PSF Trademarks Committee, and have served on the committee for 5 years. We resolve legal matters in the committee, enter into relationships of fiscal sponsorship with relevant projects to further protect our IP, and generally improve the relationships with broader Python communities through friendly and productive conversations about trademark rights.
  • Having a friendly demeanor and also a thorough concern with protection of PSF rights, when I send a "C&D" letter as TC chair, the reply I get is always "thank you."
  • Recently, I assisted moderately with PSF Chair Van Lindberg's spearheading of an opposition to a conflicting trademark claim in the EU over a logo incorporating the "Python" word mark.
• I chair the Outreach and Education Committee, which was formed in 2011. The committee has funded numerous outreach efforts to user groups and educational efforts, and will continue to fund more in the future; acting as Board liaison is useful.
• I created the voting procedure used by the PSF for the prior several years (and the small software tools needed to make it work), assisted the PSF Secretary in its operation, and administered the last election. In response to some requests by members, I worked wtih PSF member (and Web2Py lead) Massimo Di Pierro to get his E-vote software to provide all the same wonderful cryptographic and security guarantees as the prior email-based system (and some more).
• As a Director I have participated in supervising, and reaching, some difficult staffing decisions.
• I was very pleased to serve as PSF/Board representative to give one of the two keynotes at PyCon-India in 2012. As well as enjoying representing the PSF broadly, this tied in with the mission of the Outreach & Education to regionally/nationally diversify interest in and commitment to Python and to the PSF.
• By background, I am a recovering humanities academic, tempted away from post-structuralist political philosophy by the intrigue and wiles of algorithms and data structures (always best expressed in this language Guido gave us).
• I am the author of Addison Wesley's Text Processing in Python, of the IBM developerWorks' column Charming Python (since 2001), and of various other articles advancing and explaining the use of Python and its tools and libraries. I have created some moderately well-used FOSS Python tools (most collected in Gnosis Utilities); these have been poorly maintained in recent years, I confess, but I am delighted that several large pieces have recently been adopted for maintenance by other FLOSS developers.
• Often a speaker at PyCon and OSCON. I have been an advocate for use of Python by several public-interest software projects, including in the voting software developed by the Open Voting Consortium (I was CTO and board member of that organization). I also have been a consultant with a number of notable Python-using organizations, at the margins helping to expand that use.

Jessica McKellar

Current board member

It has been an honor and pleasure to serve on the PSF Board this past year. I love this community, and I hope to have the opportunity to continue to serve it as a Board member as it grows into new challenges and opportunities next year.

I bring several perspectives to the Board, as:

• a user group organizer, for the Boston Python user group -- the largest Python user group in the world.
• someone who regularly interacts with beginners, new community members, and first-time open source contributors, through various initiatives including the OpenHatch project, Google Summer of Code, and as a Twisted core developer.
• someone who regularly does programming outreach to underrepresented groups, through my work on the Outreach and Education Committee, Software Carpentry, and as head organizer for the Boston Python Workshop.

This past year, as part of my Foundation work I:

• served on the PSF Outreach and Education Committee, and in particular worked to promote the committee and help groups write and submit grant requests.
• was a financial aid chair for PyCon US.
• regularly spoke and wrote about the PSF and encouraged community participation (e.g. PyCon Canada 2012 keynote, PyCon US 2013 keynote, PSF blog posts).
• am helping with Python's participation as an umbrella organization in Google Summer of Code.
• regularly reached out to individuals and initiatives about partnering with the PSF or applying for grants / getting community support to run Python events.

Next year, I'd like to:

• work on more efficient processing of grant requests by the various committees, followed by better publicity about the great results that come out of those grants.
• continue to work with the Outreach and Education Committee, in particular proactively identifying local advocates in communities and encouraging them to seek financial and other support from the PSF for local initiatives.
• work on more global community development, through the above bullet point as well as a "regional representatives" program that the Board has been discussing this year.
• work on, in an open and transparent way, structural changes (to the mailing lists, to what it means to be a member, etc.) to make online PSF member discussions more productive and less frustrating.

Lynn Root

New board member

I am a Software Engineer/Python programmer for Red Hat in the Bay Area, but only have been programming since late 2011. I am active in the local Python, PyLadies, and Django communities, and lead PyLadies SF.

As a board member, I hope to help the PSF in continuing to foster its relationships with its many local, regional, and international communities. I also want to look for new opportunities for the PSF to develop and influence the Python community.

What I have accomplished in the past year:

• Member of the PyCon 2013 program committee.
• Lurker of the PSF Outreach & Education committee.
• Helped the PSF O&E committee start a new http://psf-outreach.org/ blog.
• http://www.meetup.com/pyladies-sf – Started in April 2012, now almost 700 members.
• Initiated the start of PyLadies in Atlanta, NYC, Portland, Seattle, Austin, Toronto, Brno, CZ.
• Led the first Python workshops for women in Brno, CZ and Zagreb, Croatia.
• Led the adoption of the http://www.pyladies.com/CodeOfConduct Code of Conduct for PyLadies as a whole.
• Helped/led http://rupy.eu RuPy, PyLadies @ http://djangocon.us DjangoCon US, and the https://www.djangoproject.com/foundation/ DSF scholarship programs.
• Held workshops for PyLadies & PyLaddies to craft PyCon talk submissions, and practice PyCon conference talks
• Maintainer of http://www.pyladies.com PyLadies website, and led the site's redesign.

What I wish to continue:

• Diversity outreach with speaking, holding events, and starting conversations.
• Help future PyCons in North America with program selection, and any other capacity that I can.
• Spread the word & love for Python & open source by holding intro workshops, sprints for OSS projects, writing http://github.com/econchick/new-coder tutorials, etc.
• Continue creating comfortable environments for Pythonistas and budding new coders to learn, develop, hack, speak, etc.

Naomi Ceder

New Board Member.

I've been using, promoting and teaching Python on various levels since 2000, as a teacher, author, developer, manager, and organizer.

• the author of The Quick Python Book, 2nd ed., which was Manning Publications' number 2 selling book in 2012
• giving various Python talks and tutorials,
• one of the organizers and main instructor of the Chicago Python Workshops
• active in ChiPy's North branch.
• Created the poster session at PyCon and coordinated it for 3 years
• This year I created/coordinated the first education summit at PyCon, which had about 90 attendees from all areas of Python education.
• I helped staff the PSF booth at PyCon.

As IT director of a company that runs on Python I'm very interested in the long term health and growth of Python and the Python community, and my personal circumstances have given me some very personal experience with diversity and inclusion from several different, and even contradictory, perspectives.

Finally, perhaps the best qualification I can offer is that once committed to something like this, I'm excruciatingly reliable - I absolutely hate to miss meetings or deadlines, and I make sure tasks I'm assigned "just get done."

My goal as a board member would be to do all that I can to help the PSF achieve its mission in any way that I can. In particular, I'm interested in:

• furthering the adoption of Python 3,
• making sure that python.org has the resources it needs to serve the growing communitiy
• fostering the growth of that community through education and outreach
• ensuring that the Python community is as inclusive and welcoming as possible.

Brett Cannon

New Board Member (sort of).

I was previously a board member from 2006 - 2010 until I needed to leave the board to focus on my Ph.D. I have been a member of both the PSF and the Python development team since April 2003 (nearly a decade).

I have two reasons for running for the board:

1. To make sure that there is board representation of python-dev by an actively contributing core developer
2. To improve the level of discourse on psf-members

Point 1 is to simply make sure that the needs of the development team which maintain the programming language we have all rallied around are met.

Point 2 is in reaction to sometimes abhorrent exchanges that have occurred on psf-members over the past year. I want to see change there, so I am deciding to be that change by running for the board to be in a position to do what I can to make psf-members a pleasant place to discuss any relevant topic.

Tarek Ziadé

New Board Member

I am a Python developer at Mozilla, I have created the French Python user Group (Afpy), write some books in French & english about Python and tried to help in the packaging issues.

I want to be a board member to do the following:

1. create a website like https://reps.mozilla.org/people for the Python community - a place that lists community members & their actions
2. help in the ongoing effort of have a network of local PSF representatives

Brian Curtin

Current Board Member

I was elected to the board in 2012, and was elected to the membership in 2011.

I've been involved with the following efforts around the Python community:

• Communications. I'm currently the PSF's Communications Officer, and I'm the lead and basically sole member of the Communications Committee. In this capacity, I've written many blog posts for the PSF blog, have done several email campaigns to get news out, and have kept our followers connected on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. I also maintain the PSF sections of the website.
• PyCon. I've been involved with PyCon since 2010 on the program committee, but my primary contribution has been communications related. For PyCon 2011 I ran a series of interviews to drum up publicity, and for PyCon 2012 and 2013 I was/am the formal Publicity Coordinator. In this capacity I have publicized just about every aspect of the conference through a heavy blogging and email campaign, along with extensive use of Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. I've also gained experience and several contacts in the tech news scene, whom I hope to leverage when it comes to some of the more publicly interesting PSF actions.
• Sprints. I've been involved with the Sprints Committee since its inception, and became the leader of the committee. I've done some outreach to get groups interested in doing sprints, and through my previously mentioned communications work, I keep my ear low to the ground and try to chime in when I see sprints being organized (via the 100+ user group mailing lists I follow). Although the committee is mostly on "cruise control" a great deal of the time, I do some writing and also handle reimbursements.
• New Website. I've been involved somewhat in the early portions of the redesign project for proposal reviewing, but I've been more involved post-selection. I'm currently working with the team on sample content as they design certain parts, and I'll be involved in generating copy for the final site.
• CPython. This has become a smaller part of my time than I'd like, but I'm still close with the core team and contribute in bursts every few months. I tend to look after the Windows side of things - the installer, winreg, os module, etc.

As for my 2013 plans:

• Increase visibility both at the board level and the greater PSF level. The occasional news we put out is fine and well and it gets good uptake, but I'd like to turn it up. When it comes to public news generated by the PSF, I'd like to consider using formal press releases like we do for PyCon and leverage the press relationships I've started to build from that. When it comes to the board, I'd like to help keep the membership closer in tune to what's going on. When it comes to the committees, I'd like to make sure everyone knows who they are, what they're doing, and why they're doing it. Some of this work is website work, and some of it is just more frequent and detailed email reporting. The community and membership want and deserve more information.
• Extend our hands to the global community. The 2012 board had tossed around some ideas and I think it's time to get something going. I'd like to see us identify leaders in local communities around the globe and give them a direct pipeline into the PSF (via a committee of members, and at least one board member), perhaps calling them representatives (regional, country, etc). I want to make sure user groups are informed and connected to the PSF's news, funds, resources, and network so that not only we can help them, but they can help us.
• Get more people involved. This ties in with the visibility issue, but we have a lot of things that are ripe for contribution, and a lot of people not sure what they can do around here. We have a number of committees currently in operation, and we probably have more ideas than we know what to do with. I would like to present more information about what we have and try to spark some new committees so that there's more of a sense of accomplishment than the PSF being "just a mailing list". I've felt that way and a lot of people have - let's do something about it.

I was honored to have been elected in 2012, and would be honored to serve again in 2013.

Noah Kantrowitz

New board member

I am a web developer for Opscode, a server tools startup in Seattle, though I'm based in the San Francisco area. I have been a Python developer since 2005, initially working on the Trac bug tracker and then the broader Python web world. Since 2007 I have been involved with PyCon US as an organizer and reviewer. I am also currently the lead of the PSF infrastructure team. In my capacity as the infrastructure lead I have helped stabilize and secure many python.org services, most recently providing high-security SSL to PyPI. I have also worked with the PyPy team to migrate their services to PSF hardware, improving their reliability and accessibility.

I would like to see the PSF board continue to move forward in its support of the broader Python community. I want the PSF to be seen as the first place to go for help when improving Python as a language, an orgnaization, or a family.

Over the next year I would like to:

• Continue the migration and growth of the OSU OSL private cloud infrastructure.
• Work with the new part-time Operations team.
• Expand the PSF's interaction with other organizations such as the PyPy team and the evolving Community Sysadmin group.
• Improve and support the running of PyCon and other conferences.
• Evangelize the Python Mentors and SpeakUp projects to bring more people into the fold.

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Tim Peters

2012 Board Member

I've been on the PSF Board from its inception, the sole surviving member of the Institutional Memory Party. As the years go by, I do less on the Board - but still occasionally say something useful ;-) I'm happy to serve again, but since I seem to be switching to the Old And In The Way Party, would also be happy to see someone more engaged replace me.

Paul Everitt

Newish Board Member

I am a partner with Agendaless Consulting in Virginia. I started using Python in 1993 and attended the first workshop. Greg Stein and I served on the PSF bootstrapping board and I served on the first PSF board. Before that, I was involved in various capacities in the PSA and the original Python conferences. I was co-founder of Zope and also helped start the Plone Foundation, serving in various capacities (executive director, board member, president.)

My experience with the PSF though is outdated, a wrong that I'd like to right. I enjoy the non-technical aspects of organizing, the grungy work of organizing, and the puzzle that is humanity.

I want to serve on the PSF board for personal reasons: I miss all my old friendships and want to make new ones, but also, I owe so much to Python and am overdue on giving back. Specifically, I am interested in:

• As the now-junior person, doing the crummy administrative work that needs attention and re-earning credentials
• Supporting the existing board members' work on outreach, diversity, and regionalizing
• Helping the PSF renew or reinvent itself, reaching a point of joy and purpose
• Ensuring that the PSF, in current or new form, is an effective organization with clear, finite purpose and the resources to get stuff done

Alex Gaynor

New board member

I am a software engineer working for Rdio, and living in San Francisco. I'm a core developer of PyPy, CPython, and Django as well as the creator of Topaz (a Ruby implementation in RPython). I currently serve on the board of the Django Software Foundation. I'm active in the PyCon program committee.

As a member of the DSF board I am involved in:

• Require codes of conduct for events the DSF sponsors.
• Guiding the selection of the site for future DjangoCons.
• Supporting conferences and individuals in the Django community.

My goals as a board member would be:

• Continuing to make the Python community bigger, more open, welcoming, and diverse.
• Improving the structure of the PSF to better allow members and the community to contribute to fulfilling our mission.
• Assist Noah and the infrastructure/operations teams in modernizing and improving the Python web presence.
• Assist PyCon and the community of international Python conferences in effectively promoting and representing the Python community.

Frank Wiles

New Board Member.

I'm the Founder and President of Revolution Systems (http://www.revsys.com) a Django consultancy based in Lawrence, Kansas. While I've been a member of the OSS community for nearly two decades I'm relatively new to Python/Django world.

Because my role is mostly on the business end of things I don't often have as much time as I would like to donate back to the community in terms of code and volunteering. I'm putting myself forward (after some light nudging from other community members) in hopes of fixing this and giving back more to the community that makes my business and life possible. There are many here that have listed themselves as an advocate for a particular group, but strangely I see business and commercial interests not being represented so I will take up that torch.

While not at the expense of developers, children, diversity or any of the other exciting and necessary initiatives I would like to see the PSF expand it's relationship with businesses of all sizes for mutual benefit. As an outsider to the PSF board I feel I can bring a fresh perspective in this area and clearly articulate what I have seen as a business owner externally.

Other Python related community contributions:

• Written Python related articles for Linux Pro Magazine
• Successfully argued for the Open Sourcing of Django
• A few small Django apps http://github.com/frankwiles and http://github.com/revsys
• Multi-year PyCon and DjangoCon sponsor

Van Lindberg

Current Board Member.

Although I have been working with or for the board since 2007, I like to work quietly, helping get stuff done without a lot of noise or drama. I want the PSF to work well as an organization and be a valuable steward of the Python community's trust.

• From 2007-2012, I was the PSF's outside counsel. I made an arrangement with my law firm to provide free legal services to the PSF. In that capacity, I helped with trademark issues, licensing questions, export control/crypto issues, and nonprofit governance.
• I created the modern sponsorship program for PyCon and led sponsorship efforts for the 2008 and 2009 PyCons. I then was the PyCon chair for the 2010-2011 cycle in Atlanta. New items that I created for PyCon:
  • A budget for PyCon with up-to-date tracking of probable costs and revenues
  • The PyCon Program Guide
  • The Expo Hall
  • Startup Row

In the past year I have been working as the Chairman of the Board. In that capacity, I have done the following:

• Worked to regularize our personnel process, including dealing with staff turnover
• Worked with counsel, supporting companies, and community efforts to successfully protect Python from the UK trademark claim
• Created a system of regular responsibilities and reports among the board
• Lowered the average response time on board resolutions (such as funding requests) from four to two weeks

I have been working with many different people over most of the past year on a new membership model for the PSF, to be proposed 2013-03-15 to the entire membership. I think that the PSF needs some structural change to advance into the future, and making the PSF work better as an organization would be my number one priority throughout 2013.

I would be honored to continue to serve on the board.

Doug Napoleone

Current Board Member.

I have worked for a number of years within the Python Community. I work at Nuance Communications on speech recognition systems; the core research all in python.

• I have served on the board for 3 years.
• I am one of the core organizers for PyCon US since 2006.
• I am active in multiple sub committees (Trademarks, Sprints, PyCon US)
• Helped manage the Boston Python Users Group, 2006-2007

I am very pleased with the more active role the Board and the PSF in general has taken in the community. I believe the PSF membership needs to move to a more open model. The existing membership model does not scale as the community has grown. I would like to help with a change in the membership model, if the existing members agree to the proposed changes.

Please use the following format:

Candidate Name
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*2012 Board Member.* or *New Board Member.*

Description.

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